'Rescue of the Bounty: Disaster and Survival in Superstorm Sandy' author to speak at Marine Musuem

Saturday

Mar 29, 2014 at 10:00 PM

Michael Tougias’ latest book is about the sinking of the tall ship that was once a tourist attraction in Fall River.

Linda Murphy Lifestyle Editor @HNFastFood

FALL RIVER — The tall ship that was once a fixture on the Fall River waterfront is the topic of author Michael Tougias’ latest book, “Rescue of the Bounty: Disaster and Survival in Superstorm Sandy.” Tougias, who co-authored the book with Douglas A. Campbell will be in Fall River on Sunday, April 6, to discuss it at the Marine Museum.

The Bounty was built in 1960 for the film “Mutiny on the Bounty,” about the mutiny of the crew of the H.M.S. Bounty in the 1789. The replica ship was a tourist attraction near Battleship Cove from 1993 to 2001. It sank in October 2012, when her 16-person crew, en route from New London, Conn., to Florida, sailed through Superstorm Sandy, going down 100 miles off Cape Hatteras, N.C.

The author of 23 books, including five others about boating disasters and survival at sea, Tougias said at first he resisted the idea of writing about the sinking of the vessel. At the time, Tougias was finishing up “A Storm Too Soon: A True story of Disaster, Survival and an Incredible Rescue,” but he said he couldn’t resist learning more about why the Bounty captain, Robin Walbridge, set sail during the well-forecasted hurricane.

Tougias said he decided to ask Campbell, who has also written about maritime disasters, to co-author the book with him.

“He has experience with tall ships, and I have a lot of experience writing about Coast Guard rescues,” said Tougias, adding they looked at the disaster from varied perspectives. “We really tried to get into the mind of the captain, and why he made the decision to sail because the storm was so well forecasted — a lot of things played into his mind.”

One of the reasons Walbridge decided to sail during the storm was because the tall ship was scheduled at an event in Florida. The decision cost Walbridge his life, along with another passenger, Claudene Christian, a descendant of Fletcher Christian, the mutinous mate aboard the HMS Bounty in 1789.

“My theory is that trying to follow a schedule always gets you killed; in talking to so many (sea disaster) survivors over the years, it’s always trying to stay on schedule that gets people killed,” said Tougias.

The younger crew on the Bounty also didn’t want to go against the captain’s decision because they didn’t want to let everybody down by bailing out, he added.

The National Transportation Safety Board investigated the sinking and blamed the captain for a “reckless” decision to sail during the storm.

Tougias, who will share his insights into what happened on the vessel and the dramatic rescue of the ship’s passengers at the talk at the Marine Museum, said another factor that played into Walbridge’s decision was that he had sailed in a hurricane before. Tougias said much of his information about the captain came from Walbridge’s sister, who gave him insight into his upbringing along, with other people who knew him throughout the years.

“It’s a shame that he’ll be remembered for this one mistake,” said Tougias, adding that they tried to take a balanced approach in writing about Walbridge, who was a seasoned captain.

The two authors interviewed 70 to 80 people from both sides of the disaster: the ship and the Coast Guard in telling of the dramatic rescue during the massive hurricane, which was spread out 900 miles across the Atlantic.

“I think they’re really lucky that anyone survived. The Coast Guard decided to send out at C-130 plane and the pilot heard the first mate say, ‘We’re going down.’ Without that, who knows what would have happened,” said Tougias, adding up until the C-130 pilot heard the first mate, the Coast Guard wasn’t aware that the ship was in a mayday emergency situation, just that they were having trouble keeping above the storm-churned water.

The dramatic story also encompasses the Coast Guard helicopter pilots, one of which had just returned to active duty after surviving a helicopter crash, and the rescue swimmer’s accounts of saving 14 passengers from the water in extremely dangerous conditions. The rescue was made even worse by the Gulf Stream carrying the rescue swimmers away from the ship’s passengers and crew who battling for survival in the water.

“You really get a glimpse into what makes these people tick,” said Tougias.

The book, he said, is not just of interest to sailors. “It’s for readers who like a character-driven story. ... You really get to know these people. My goal is to invest the reader in the people and keep it fast-paced,” said Tougias.

The public is invited to Tougias’ free talk about the book at the Marine Museum at Fall River, 70 Water St., on April 6 at 2 p.m. This free event is sponsored by a grant from the Mass Cultural Council and is open to members and the public. For more information, visit www.tougias.com and marinemuseumatfr.org.